Visa Chaos in India: US Defers Hundreds Of H-1B Appointments To 2026 - What's Happening?

In a massive shakeup, the visa applicants in India on Tuesday received messages that their interviews were postponed from December to next year due to a new policy. Most H-1B visa interviews have now been pushed to March 2026 as US consulates buy time to implement tougher social media vetting. Beginning December 15, 2025, officials will scrutinise an applicant's online accounts to flag posts deemed "negative" toward the US before clearing their cases.The US Embassy in India also confirmed that appointment dates are being rescheduled and warned that any visa applicant arriving at the consulate on a previously scheduled interview date after being notified of a reschedule will be refused entry. "If you have received an email advising that your

visa appointment has been rescheduled, Mission India looks forward to assisting you on your new appointment date. Arriving on your previously scheduled appointment date will result in your being denied admittance to the Consulate," the message said.

Also Read: Trump's New H-1B Order Could Put Indians At Risk: What the New Family Scrutiny Really Means

US tightens visa scrutiny

Earlier this year, US immigration authorities made it clear that your social media posts may lead to the revocation or denial of your visa. The Donald Trump administration also directed US embassy officials to reject visa applicants who have worked in roles related to fact-checking, content moderation, compliance, or online safety. According to a State Department memo obtained by Reuters, consular officials have been instructed to deny visas to anyone seen being "responsible for, or complicit in, censorship or attempted censorship of protected expression in the United States."It also instructs consular officers to examine the resumes and LinkedIn profiles not just of applicants but also of accompanying family members to determine whether they have worked in roles involving misinformation, disinformation, content moderation, fact-checking, compliance, online safety, and related fields.The internal cable sent to all US missions on December 2 outlines stricter rules for screening H-1B applicants in particular.In September, the H-1B program came under strain after President Donald Trump imposed a one-time $100,000 fee on new H-1B work visas, a move that could sharply raise costs for employers and hit Indian workers seeking temporary jobs in the US.